Business environment Report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Business environment Report - Essay Example The changing business strategies to cope with the fast transforming socio-economical paradigms of the times have become crucial factors that enable the businesses to compete against their rivals. The external factors are often the major proponents that necessitate organizational changes. The world economy is presently undergoing tremendous turmoil. In the recent past, the American economy has been under tremendous strain with its deteriorating job market and dismal performance of its various public private companies. Its offshore business has also suffered as a result of bad economic policies of the current republican government, headed by George Bush. The bankruptcy of few of its major financial institutions has resulted in the financial meltdown that has created a serious crisis situation in the American economy that has cascaded down to the rest of the world. The recessive trend in the American economy has forced the businesses to meet the challenges with creative business strategies and embrace the changing business compulsions with vigour and vitality. In a news report in the ‘Guardian’ on 3 December 2008, it was reported that UK’s top retailer, Tesco was really struggling against ‘Morrisons’ to maintain its position. While Tesco had registered its worst sales in 14 years during the Christmas, Morrisons had surged ahead towards the position of top retailer! The article was succinct in describing the cause and effects of the current recessive trend in the retail industry and the various ways through which they were trying to meet the challenges and attract customers to increase their sales. In yet another news item in the same issue, Christ Hirst had highlighted the ‘Christmas supermarket advertisements’. Hirst has revealed that the advertisements play a significant role in the boosting the sales figure and Morrisons’ ‘The campaign is about freshness and provenance,

Mexico, The Mexican Drug Cartel Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Mexico, The Mexican Drug Cartel - Research Paper Example The official language of the country is Spanish and it is marked as the â€Å"most populous Spanish-speaking country in the world.† Christianity is the religion that is practiced by most of the people in the country. The rate of poverty is very high in the country and it was estimated that 44 percent of the people living in the country earned below the poverty line (Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs 2011). Most of the people in the country live in the urban areas and people leave the rural areas and move to the developed ones in search of better opportunities. Furthermore, many people leave the country and move to the United States for better earning opportunities. The country earns much of its income by sending oil to other countries as it is an oil producing country. Criminal activities are a reason of many problems in the country. The abduction rates in Mexico are marked to be very high in comparison to other countries across the globe. Strong drug trafficking organizati ons function in the country and they are responsible for the drug trading between South America and the United States. Felipe Calderon was declared as the President of the country in the year 2006. He took strong steps for overcoming the issue of drug trafficking and his measures have resulted in the death of 35000 people in the country since the initiation of his campaign against drugs (BBC 2012). Mexico is marked to be a country with a leading role in the making of drugs as well serving as a route for the transportation of drugs. The major movement of drugs which include marijuana and methamphetamine in the United States is from Mexico. Ninety percent of the cocaine that reaches to the United States is through its movement via Mexico. ... The drug trafficking organizations are not only involved in the movement of drugs but at the same time, they are involved in kidnappings as well as murders. The drug cartels have gained a strong hold in the country during the last decade of the twentieth century. This mainly followed the deaths of Cali and Medellin cartels belonging to Colombia. The National Drug Intelligence Center has put forward that the drug trade in the United States is now mainly dominated by the Mexican drug mafia. The Mexican drug cartels have a strong stand and many government officials particularly those from the law enforcement agencies work in collaboration with them. This is owing to the bribes provided by the drug trafficking organizations. A campaign was initiated in the year 2006 by the President of Mexico against the drug cartels in nine states out of the total thirty two states in Mexico (Cook et al 2007). The Mexican government has put forward the fact that there are seven drug cartels working in t he country. Gulf, Sinaloa and Juarez are the major drug trafficking groups and their presence is dominant in most parts of the country. Many dominant drug trafficking organizations have started working together in Mexico. This has led to the formation of two major groups in the world of drug trafficking in Mexico. It has been indicated that this unity has mainly resulted due to the arrest of many leaders in these groups. Mexican cartels have also started to have a strong hold in the United States. They have done so via cultivating drugs on the land of the United States and by forming alliances with criminal groups in the United States. The purpose of this alliance is to make the

Jung’s Unconscious Mind Essay Example for Free

Jung’s Unconscious Mind Essay In his description and explanation of the fourth dimension of the unconscious mind, Carl Jung uses an example involving one of his patients to justify his addition of the collective unconscious as the fourth part of Freud’s unconscious mind. His patient had successfully completed the psychoanalytic process of transference but was still not cured. This was the end of the process of psychoanalytic transference developed and practiced by Sigmund Freud. This led Jung to believe that the unconscious consisted of more than the components of repression, as was believed by Freud. If what she had been repressing had been discovered and was now being embraced in her conscious mind, her condition should have improved according to Freud’s theory. Her condition had not improved thus, Jung felt that there must be more. Jung began to look to her dreams, which he believed to be essentially photos of the unconscious mind at work. He found patterns that appeared ideal to and should have allowed psychoanalytic transference to function sufficiently. Despite her achievement of transference, the woman was still not well. He continued to observe her dreams. She had likened him, the doctor, to an amalgamation of her father and a lover who embodied the admirable traits of her father just as the process would call for. This should have led to her cure but it did not. Due to the fact she had not yet improved, he continued to observe her dreams until one day, he realized that she had likened him not just to the amalgamation of father and lover but, to a more divine figure. Though she was not a religious person, he figured that she had a â€Å"longing for a god†¦ welling up from our deepest darkest instinctual nature (Jung, 492). Her problem was not one of repressed feelings but a longing for something higher to guide and protect her. Possibly in the time that her father was alive, he was able to serve that purpose. With him gone, the urge regained influence. The urge was not one of conscious mind. It was an attempt to replace the Christian faith she had abandoned with something real. She likened the doctor to a god and because she knew her relationship with the doctor to be intimate, it helped her to feel closer to god. Freud’s definition of the unconscious mind included only things that had once been present in the conscious mind. The patient had never encountered the symbolic, ancient deities that were represented by the father figure of her dreams. There was a demand for more content in the definition of the unconscious mind. This psychological phenomenon has affected my attitude toward religion as well. I, like the patient in this case, abandoned my Christian upbringing for a more agnostic and eclectic practice. It is no doubt that there is such an instinctual nature to attempt to define and relate to the divine. It may be observed in the fact that people of all cultures, in all parts of the world have some type of religious belief and practice. There are many different types. The proof lies in their existence alone. Though they may vary in many ways, they are all a result of this passion which wells up from the deepest, darkest part of our beings. Of course, religion today has become part of our experience. During our childhood, we are introduced to religion by our parents. The proof of the unconscious mind’s longing is in the founders of these religions. These people had a passion that drove them to do more than they were required. The feelings of hunger, thirst and cold required them to hunt and seek shelter. These actions were result based purely of an experiential nature. Some of these people were good at what they had to do and were able to live more or less comfortably. Their minds had the leisure to allow the unconscious mind to play during their dreams. Given the chance, the unconscious mind played with the images of the divine. It drew from the collective unconscious of archetypal imagery. It gave them hints that there was more to what could be seen. It offered images of things good and offered means of achieving them. These men, these dreamers, acted out their dreams. They paid homage to what their intuitions, their unconscious minds, had shown them. They performed rituals imitating creatures not of this world. They went into trances and allowed themselves to be controlled completely by the unconscious mind. They performed the first rituals. They allowed their unconscious desires to dictate their actions. For these men, religion was intuitive. Now, we get the religious experience with its images and concepts, fed to us in a spoon with our mashed carrots. For us, we are conditioned into religion. I have always been more of a nonconformist. When I became old enough to question why, to critically examine more abstract concepts, to use my experiences of reality as a gage against what I was being told, I stepped out of conformity. At that point, I was antichristian. Free of the dogmas and the shelters they provided, my unconscious mind sought some sort of nourishment to quench the thirst for the fulfillment of spiritual energies. Off of the path, I soon found myself lost. So what did I do? I did what came natural. I delved into other religions. I began to study Buddhist teachings. I studied the Shinto practiced in Japan. I learned about the caste system of Indian culture. Why all this? I suppose that I needed to. I had taken out a part of my life and needed to fill it back in. I had taken away the food for my spiritual appetite. I broke my relationship to the divine. I was discontent with no place to release my spiritual energies. However, this was not a conscious decision. Outside of the Christian tradition within which I was brought up, I felt the genuine need for fulfillment of divine nature. For something bigger than myself and bigger than mankind as a whole. No one told me I had to find a proper outlet for spiritual energies. I was driven by an unknown force, a curiosity that masked a deeper desire to relate to the divine. I wandered. I stumbled. I tripped, fell, got back up and tripped again. Masked as curiosity, the passion of my unconscious mind has driven me to explore different methods. I have thumbed through religious books from all over the world. I attend religious ceremonies and festivals of different origin. My unconscious mind has created this curiosity in order to fulfill its own desire to be a part of and to be connected to something greater. I have abandoned my antichristian post now. I now exist outside of Christianity and am able to gaze upon it as an objective observer. I agree with many Christian principles. I agree with them though, on my own terms, in my own understanding. I stepped away from the religion to which I had been conditioned. I explored others as was deemed necessary by my curiosities and I have found some things that I believe to be true, some things that make me feel closer to the divine. The unconscious includes the ego, the superego, and the id. Unwanted memories are pushed into the unconscious mind to be put aside. They can cause many ailments when not properly discarded. These ailments may be alleviated by methods such as psychoanalytical transference. However, even after complete transference has been completed, there is still activity taking place in the unconscious mind. It is not limited to repression. Also dwelling in the subconscious mind is a collective consciousness composed of archetypal images and instincts. This is responsible for the imagery of our dreams, the universal perceptions of beauty and the desire to be somehow linked to the divine. I have seen it in my life and I have evidence of it in the fact that religion is present and dominates nearly every society around the globe.

The hippocratic oath

The hippocratic oath This is the scenario: You are terminally ill, all medical treatments acceptable to you have been exhausted, and the suffering in its different forms is unbearable. Because the illness is serious, you recognize that your life is drawing to a close. Euthanasia comes to mind as a way of release. The dilemma is awesome. But it has to be faced. Should you battle on, take the pain, endure the indignity, and await the inevitable end, which may be days, weeks, or months away? Or should you take control of the situation and resort to some form of euthanasia, which in its modern-language definition has come to mean help with a good death? (Humphry, 1) The aforementioned circumstance is one that millions of people meet in the United States each year; despite the worlds advanced medical technologies, no one has discovered cures for diseases such as cancer or AIDS. Euthanasia is when a doctor intentionally kills a person by the administration of drugs at that persons voluntary and competent reque st. Physician assisted suicide is when a doctor intentionally helps a patient to commit suicide by providing drugs for self-administration at that persons voluntary and competent request. The euthanasia of humans probably dates back to the beginning of time but the earliest mention of it can be noted in the Hippocratic Oath. The use of the Hippocratic Oath has continued since it was adopted by those in the medical profession but not all types of euthanasia are openly linked to doctors. Uses in colonial America, Europe during the Holocaust, and even most cases in modern society today do not involve direct contact by a doctor. The Hippocratic Oath was written between 400 and 300 B.C. The exact date is not known because the work is likely not that of Hippocrates; many professors and higher scholars who taught in that era took the works of their pupils and submitted them as their own. This oath is only mentioned in accordance when speaking about euthanasia because it is the first document essentially discerning the act of euthanasia. Hippocrates stated I will prescribe regimens for the good of my patients according to my ability and my judgment and never do harm to anyone. I will not give a lethal drug to anyone if I am asked, nor will I advise such a plan; and similarly I will not give a woman a pessary to cause an abortion. In the modern version of the Hippocratic Oath, this has been translated to I will apply dietic measures for the benefit of the sick according to my ability and judgment; I will keep them from harm and injustice. I will neither give a deadly drug to anybody if asked for it, nor will I ma ke a suggestion to this effect. Similarly I will not give to a woman an abortive remedy. In purity and holiness, I will guard my life and my art. Around the 1970s, many medical schools in America and other countries chose to abandon the use of the Hippocratic oath as part of their ceremony for graduation so many doctors who treat patients now have no idea what the oath is comprised of. The old Hippocratic Oath is no longer suitable for modern times and is, therefore, subject to a variety of interpretations. Depending on the individual, such oaths may be perceived critical to the way in which a particular physician perceives himself or herself, or it may be seen as another rite of passage, important in form but unimportant in detail. Even, however, if it is believed to be merely a symbolic rite of passage that does not become a part of what an individual thinks he/she is, it does constitute a public avowal and a public pledge. These oaths almost invariably promise, above all, fealty to ones actual or potential patients and to work for their good regardless of religion or lack thereof, race, ethnicity, gender, party or socioeconomic considerations. It is said to be freely taken and not to have been coerced (Loewy, 1). This being said, most doctors assume that it is morally wrong to kill a patient no matter their medical history or the oath they took at the time of their completion of medical school. When confronted with the concept of human euthanasia, countless people would say that they would want their family member alleviated of pain when in the process of death, so why not provide a catalyst in the process of dying by early euthanization instead of letting them experience misery for a longer period? The main question when speaking of physician assisted suicide, or even suicide for medical reasons, is: should it be conducted? From The Arguments for Euthanasia, Past U.S. and British advocates typically adduced the same four arguments used today to justify euthanasia: 1) It is a human right born of self-determination; 2) it would produce more good than harm, mainly through pain relief; 3) there is no substantive distinction between active euthanasia and the withdrawal of the life-sustaining medical interventions; and 4) its legalization would not produce deleterious consequence. As Eugene Debs and Dr. Millard claimed in 1913 and 1931, respectively, patients have a right to con trol the manner of their death and, more specifically, terminally ill patients have the right to a quick and painless death with physicians help (Emanuel, 3). Overall, Eugene Debs and Dr. Millard were correct in their beliefs at the time but as the world has become industrialized, so have the reasons developed for which euthanasia should be legalized. As stated before, the natural extension of patient rights and alleviation of suffering of terminally ill patients are key points; however, now we can see reasons such as minimization of health care costs when it does not aid in the betterment of the patient. Emanuel brings up another great factor in his Arguments for Euthanasia passage when he mentions a passage from A. Bach-Medico-Legal Congress, There are also cases in which the ending of human life by physicians is not only morally right, but an act of humanity. I refer to cases of absolutely incurable, fatal and agonizing disease or condition, where death is certain and necessarily attended by excruciating pain, when it is the wish of the victim that a deadly drug should be administered to end his life and terminate his irremediable suffering (Emanuel, 3). Many people have written letters and provided in depth stories as to why they think suicide by the terminally ill is justified. Before Carol Bernstein Ferry took her own life in 2001, she wrote a letter explaining her decision in the hopes that it would contribute to an understanding of euthanasia. That is why I am writing this letter, explaining why I choose to take active steps to end my life rather than waiting for death to come gradually. With his letter I also want to make it clear that, although I have the support and tacit agreement of my children and close friends, no one but myself will take the steps that cause death. If is unfortunate that I must say this; our laws are at a destructive point just now, so if anyone other than myself actually causes my death, that person will be liable to convictio n as a felon. What an absurdity! To help someone facing a time-whether short or long-of pain and distress, whose death coming bit by bit can cause major sorrow and anxiety to family and friends, not to mention the medical help, quite useless, that must be expended in order to maintain a bearable level of pain-that this sensible deed can be construed a crime is a blot on tour legal system and on our power of thought (Ferry, 8). Many in government either feel very negatively towards Ferrys attitude or are afraid to express their true feelings on the subject as the opposite spectrum of the euthanasia debate-negatives of legalization-is broached. Any of the types of physician assisted suicide, whether it be direct (as in the doctor being present) or indirect (as in the doctor prescribing enough medication to overdose) can be construed as homicide, although it would technically be hard to tell in the case of indirect assistance since many of the amounts of medicine that terminally ill pa tients take can cause an overdose simply by accident. Much weight is placed on the Hippocratic injunction to do no harm. It has been asserted that sanctioning physician-assisted suicide would give doctors as license to kill, and physicians who accede to such requests have been branded by some as murderers. This is both illogical and inflammatory. Withdrawal of life-sustaining treatment-for example, disconnecting a ventilator at a patients request-is accepted by society, yet this requires a more definitive act by a physician than prescribing a medication that a patient has requested and is free to take or not, as he or she sees fit. Why should the latter be perceived as doing harm when the former is not (Rogatz, 31)? When articulating on the subject of euthanasia, most people present the fact that advanced medical technology has made it possible to increase human life span and treat patients in pain as in The Ethics of Euthanasia, It is argued that requests for assisted suicide come largely from patients who havent received adequate pain control or who are clinically depressed and havent been properly diagnosed or treated. There is no question that proper management of such conditions would significantly reduce the number of patients who consider suicide.However, treatable pain is not the only reason, or even the most common reason, why patients seek to end their lives. Severe body wasting, intractable vomiting, urinary and bowel incontinence, immobility, and total dependence are recognized as more important than pain in the desire for hastened death (Rogatz, 31). This stated, the more dependent people become upon their family or people employed to care for them, the more they know that their lives are ready to be over. At this point in time, many people who wish to die can simply have themselves removed from whatever machines may be extending their lives though this rarely leads to an immediate death and causes numerous patients to suffer if doctors will not p rescribe medication for pain treatment. It is argued that requests for assisted suicide are not frequent enough to warrant changing the law. Interestingly, some physicians say they have rarely, if ever, received such requests, while others say they have often received requests. This is a curious discrepancy, but I think it can be explained: the patient who seeks help with suicide will cautiously test a physicians receptivity to the idea and simply wont approach a physician who is unreceptive. Thus, there are two subsets of physicians in this situation: those who are open to the idea of assisted suicide and those who arent (Rogatz, 31). This seems to be a trend among authors who loom along the offenses of being protagonists in the line of PAS because Humphry and Clement also mention the decline of the doctor-patient relationship early in their book. Societal changes and discretionary abuses within the medical community have led to a distrust of the medical profession and a decline in the doctor-patient relationship. This deterioration of confidence is yet another force of activism that has propelled PAS to its current mainstream status. The elements of trust that existed before World War II were strong enough to legitimize a paternalistic attitude on the part of the doctor. But when trust diminished, so did the publics willingness to accept the doctors authority. Patient autonomy, spurred on by the rights culture of the 1960, increased, and with it came further acceptance of the right-to-die movementOpinion surveys have, over the years, inquired into the degree of confidence that Americans have in various institutions including congress, the press, universities, and the medical profession. The declines have been dramatic and nowhere more pronounced than in medicine. Looking at confidence in medicine from 1966-1994, the numbers speak for themselves: seventy-three percent (1966), forty-three percent (1975), thirty-five percent (1985), and twenty-three percent (19 94) (Clement, 35). Granted the studies are quite a bit dated, this was the most up-to-date information when the book was published, and is still the most correctly represented data used today. It is often argued that once we open the door physician-assisted suicide, we will find ourselves on a slippery slope

African-americans Segregates Themselves :: essays research papers

The argument that African-Americans segregates themselves from other groups is not a valid argument. It is not partly because of history, since municipal ordinance in the early 1900's determined where African-Americans could live, which are now considered ghettos. A reason why this ordinance was in existence is because Chicago is an older city that grew during a time when racial struggles were occurring. This history is what gives Chicago a high index of dissimilarity, which means that there is a high level of segregation between races. There is a long history of segregation between whites and African-Americans in Chicago and thus the old ghettos were never integrated into the city and probably will never be. There are also illegal practices that occur today that were started when signs of discrimination became relevant in the early 1900's. In this era realtors would not show African-Americans houses in a white neighborhood, and if blacks were shown houses, the banks would not approve loans for the houses. Even today, blacks who live in a predominately white neighborhood are harassed and their houses are vandalized. The long history of discrimination, especially in Chicago, show that blacks don't segregate themselves, but instead other racial groups began segregating against them a long time ago, and still are today. 2) It would not be a very viable strategy to subsidize two retail stores in this region. First off in LA there are eleven suburban activity centers(SAC's) within 20 km of the CBD, as seen on MAP2. By definition activity centers contain a high concentration of retail stores. With a large portion of the area around the CBD being occupied by SAC's, which have a high concentration of retail stores, adding more stores would only lower the threshold population of the other stores and give the new stores a low threshold population. Adding two stores to this area will probably not bring in other stores like the city would like to see happen. As we saw with the Forest Fair mall example, the Cincinnati area already had a surplus of stores, when the new mall was created, there wasn't enough households to support the added stores. The city would like to see more stores come to the CBD, because this means more taxes and other amenities that go along with an enhanced image of successful retail stores. But eventually at least two stores would shut down, because of the deficit of households.

Feminist Ideas the Screwball Comedy Film Genre Essay -- Feminism Essay

The Screwball comedy is a film genre that found its way onto the screens in the early 1930s and lasted till the early 1940s. They were a consequence of the newly adapted censorship law in 1934 that restricted addressing adult content on screen. They therefore incorporated more comedic and creative ways of symbolizing topics such as sex and homosexuality. Screwball comedies were mainly based on plots that had conflict between social classes as their many premise and always had a happy ending which was almost always marriage. This consistent maintenance of the status quo of marriage is a major aspect of feminism depicted in screwball comedies (Heather 26). While advocating for marriage, screwball comedies highlighted the shift in the foundations of marriage and greatly highlighted the growth of feminism in light of a shift in roles and expectations surrounding this institution. Feminism is motivated by the need to establish equality between the genders since most feminists attribute women’s problems to inequality between the two genders. Therefore, by way of a collection of political movements and social theories, feminists seek to curb this inequality between men and women. It is important to note that the equality sought after by feminists is not just economic and political, but also social equality. According to Heather Gilmour, The institution of marriage during the pre-modern era or the Victorian era was based on inequality as the roles to be fulfilled by both genders for the success of the marriage were essentially different (Heather 26). As the roles kept changing over time due to different circumstances, so did the expectations of marriage and along with that, the rise of feminist movement. Screwball comedies such as It... ...r to be pragmatic and cautious when drawing lessons from screwball comedies. Works Cited Gilmour, Heather. â€Å"Journal of Film and Video.† Different, except in a Different way: Marriage, Divorce, and Gender in the Hollywood Comedy of Remarriage. Chicago: University of Illinois Press, 1998. 26 – 39. Print. It Happened One Night. Dir. Frank Capra. Perf. Claudette Colbert, Clark Gable. Columbia Pictures. 1999. DVD. Shumway, David, R. â€Å"Cinema Journal.† Screwball Comedies: Constructing Romance, Mystifying Marriage. Texas: University of Texas Press, 1999. 7 – 23. Print. Willet, Cynthia. â€Å"Cultural Critique.† Baudrillard, â€Å"After Hours†, and the Postmodern Suppression of Socio-Sexual Conflict. Minnesota: University Of Minnesota Press, 1996. 143 – 161. Print. Woman of the Year. Dir. George Stevens. Perf. Spencer Tracy, Katharine Hepburn. MGM. 1997. DVD. Feminist Ideas the Screwball Comedy Film Genre Essay -- Feminism Essay The Screwball comedy is a film genre that found its way onto the screens in the early 1930s and lasted till the early 1940s. They were a consequence of the newly adapted censorship law in 1934 that restricted addressing adult content on screen. They therefore incorporated more comedic and creative ways of symbolizing topics such as sex and homosexuality. Screwball comedies were mainly based on plots that had conflict between social classes as their many premise and always had a happy ending which was almost always marriage. This consistent maintenance of the status quo of marriage is a major aspect of feminism depicted in screwball comedies (Heather 26). While advocating for marriage, screwball comedies highlighted the shift in the foundations of marriage and greatly highlighted the growth of feminism in light of a shift in roles and expectations surrounding this institution. Feminism is motivated by the need to establish equality between the genders since most feminists attribute women’s problems to inequality between the two genders. Therefore, by way of a collection of political movements and social theories, feminists seek to curb this inequality between men and women. It is important to note that the equality sought after by feminists is not just economic and political, but also social equality. According to Heather Gilmour, The institution of marriage during the pre-modern era or the Victorian era was based on inequality as the roles to be fulfilled by both genders for the success of the marriage were essentially different (Heather 26). As the roles kept changing over time due to different circumstances, so did the expectations of marriage and along with that, the rise of feminist movement. Screwball comedies such as It... ...r to be pragmatic and cautious when drawing lessons from screwball comedies. Works Cited Gilmour, Heather. â€Å"Journal of Film and Video.† Different, except in a Different way: Marriage, Divorce, and Gender in the Hollywood Comedy of Remarriage. Chicago: University of Illinois Press, 1998. 26 – 39. Print. It Happened One Night. Dir. Frank Capra. Perf. Claudette Colbert, Clark Gable. Columbia Pictures. 1999. DVD. Shumway, David, R. â€Å"Cinema Journal.† Screwball Comedies: Constructing Romance, Mystifying Marriage. Texas: University of Texas Press, 1999. 7 – 23. Print. Willet, Cynthia. â€Å"Cultural Critique.† Baudrillard, â€Å"After Hours†, and the Postmodern Suppression of Socio-Sexual Conflict. Minnesota: University Of Minnesota Press, 1996. 143 – 161. Print. Woman of the Year. Dir. George Stevens. Perf. Spencer Tracy, Katharine Hepburn. MGM. 1997. DVD.

Human Resources Management in the Asia Pacific Essay

Nowadays China becomes one of the hottest market places all over the world. From the viewpoint of the investors, China seems to be the most potential market with the huge market and attractive economic situation. The apparent result is the increase in number of foreign investments put into China. Gentran Machinery (GM) is one of the foreign investors of China. It has a joint venture (JV) in Hangzhou. Although GM has been quite successful in its operations showing an average annual growth of 12 percent in sales volume, net profits and its stock value during the past 20 years, it is noted that the joint venture in China is struggling along and is already way behind schedule. In order to address the possible problems in the JV and find solutions, some issues are to be discussed. Global assignment of managers has been a traditional method of operating international companies. The importance of transferring knowledge, upskilling remote or local managers and instilling best practice throughout a multinational organization has long been recognized as a source of competitive advantage for those firms able to expand successfully. The failure of rate of global assignments, and indeed international expansion, has throughout history been nothing less than fantastic. Although it is obvious that the expatriate managers don’t know the local labour markets and local education system, have the communication, culture, and language problems, they are familiar with the corporate culture, have advanced management skills, and also have stronger informal linkages with decision makers in the parent company. Many companies send their home country employees to foreign subsidiaries (Hutchings 2002). In the GM case, it is indicated that there isn’t a modern management system in the JV and the JV managers are at only the Chinese traditional stage of management development and they haven’t effective and efficiency management knowledge and skills. As a result, it is impossible to reduce the number of expatriate managers. Contrarily, the number of expatriate managers should be increased, because they can input the modern concepts and skills of management, help to build an effective and efficiency management system, and train the Chinese managers so that they are competent for their positions in JV. However, the selection of expatriate managers is important. According to  Hutchings (2002, p. 32), ‘Maximising the performance of expatriate managers can be defined as sending an employee to a host country operation capable of achieving the best results for the expatriate, the organisation and the host country in terms of adaptability and political, business, culture and social sensitivity. To achieving such adaptability and sensitivity, the company should pay significant attention to careful selection of expatriate for the host culture in which they will be employed, and provide on-going support (Hutchings 2002). There are a number of factors which an organisation needs to be taken into consideration to predict expatriate success. These factors include technical competence on the job; personality traits; environment variables; and family situations (Hutchings 2002). The expatriates should exhibit tolerance toward differences in race, creed, culture, customs and values. They should also have high motivations. Another criterion is that of behaviour, being defined as non-judgemental, showing tolerance for ambiguity and displays of respect (Hutchings 2002). Moreover, the expatriate’s spouse and family should be analysed. These include: the spouse’s inability to adjust; the employee’s inability to adjust; the employee’s personal or emotional immaturity; and other family problems (Hutchings 2002). Obviously, Richard Hamel (the controller of JV), who is not the type of manager necessary to facilitate the success and changes needed in the JV because he is not aggressive, innovative, and creative, should certainly be replaced. However, because of the lacks of Chinese managers and the situations discussed above, Hamel should be replaced by another suitable expatriate manager. After successfully selecting the suitable expatriate manager, on-going support is important for them. In the GM case, it is noted that although the physical accommodations are acceptable, the expatriate managers suffer from extreme emotional pressure particularly in the form of loneliness. These managers have only one emotional outlet – work. They cannot speak Chinese and have no alternative forms of entertainment that involve interactions with people. Their lifestyle can best be described as one of ‘prison inmate’. This situation indicates that the expatriate managers have not been supported well. The parent company should solve this problem. Firstly, effective training programmes can help the expatriates adjust to living and  working conditions in the new host country. Appropriate intercultural training and support can help expatriates cope with a workforce and management colleagues with drastically different cultural inclinations and reduce the stress of being alone in a foreign land. Such training should provide a clear picture of the challenges they are about to face, both in their professional and private life. The training should include general country information on the Chinese culture and tradition in written, verbal or audio / visual form as a helpful orientation for the beginning of living and working in the host country; cross-cultural seminars where the trainees can apply and deepen their knowledge of the Chinese culture and mentality; Chinese language courses to introduce expatriates and their accompanying partners some basic language skills; field trip to obtain the first impression of the country, working and living conditions; meetings with experienced expatriates who can give practical tips or useful suggestions directly related to the job or private life in China. Secondly, medical and psychological assistance and counselling should be provided. Thirdly, the on-going support to spouse and the family is important. The importance of providing information housing, health, and schooling has been acknowledged (Hutchings 2002). Fourthly, a local contact person with western culture exposure can help expatriates with their first orientation in the new living and working environment. Finally, the good relationship between the expatriate and local employees can also help to improve the living condition. After successfully selecting and supporting the expatriate managers, another important issue for JV is change the traditional management system in JV and how to train the Chinese managers. Traditionally, for a long time the promotion system in Chinese state-owned enterprises has been based on seniority of workers and staff rather than on performance. For example, a cadre can be promoted to senior ranks but cannot be demoted regardless of his capability or performance. This has resulted in a phenomenon where there are too many high-ranking officials with too few rank-and-file staff, and there is over-staffing with too few staff actually performing work (Chen 1989). Thus, a new incentive system based on performance should be established for the Chinese managers and works. The ‘performance-related pay’ is the key component of the total rewards program – and offers  employees the opportunity to share in the success of the company which is a direct result of the collective performance of each of its employees. When excellent performance is acknowledged and rewarded, people are more motivated and work smarter (Bartol, et al, 1998). Moreover, employees want to work in an environment that is productive, respectful, provides a feeling of inclusiveness, and offers friendly setting (Ramlall, 2004). The good relationships between managers and employees, as well as between employees provide the belongingness and love in the company. In addition, employees prefer to function in environments that provide a challenge, offer new learning opportunities, significantly contributes to the organization’s success, offers opportunities for advancement and personal development based on success and demonstrated interest in a particular area (Ramlall, 2004). The employee’s self-actualization need is fulfilled by open-door policies and â€Å"let’s try† approaches. Competition should be encouraged. These approaches will largely motivate the employees. The managers of JV should also share as much as information with employees, encourage autonomy and participation. Furthermore, to keep equity, the reward system should be managed by expatriate managers until the Chinese manager change their traditional attitude. Finally, the award system can be managed by all level of managers; each level of managers should responsible for their subordinations. The performance based reward system should base on the responsibility system. It is obvious that the distribution of responsibility including management responsibility and employees’ responsibility in JV is not adequate. Company should specify all position, prescribes job descriptions, procedures, routines, and rules. However, the description of procedures and routines is not detail. There are only some suggestions and references. Company’s ‘let’s try’ and ‘accepts failure’ approaches encourage employees to try any ways to accomplish their job. Employees are largely motivated to look for the most suitable way to finish their works. The suggestions and references of the work procedures and routines protect the employees from excessive autonomy so that they would not fell lonely and without support (Bolman, &a Deal, 2003). The authorization system should be established. In this system, each level of managers has their corresponding authority and responsibility which  is clearly identified. The training of Chinese managers is also important. There are external training and internal training. In case of internal training, it should be decided what to teach and how to maximise the learning effect of the participants. The teaching programmes and materials should contain knowledge and skills necessary for effective management performance. Appropriate teaching methods (for example, practical or theoretical learning or the combination of the two methods) in order to achieve the training goals should be chosen. Moreover, the trainees should be able to make use of the technical know-how or management skills after the training: this can be reached through a job empowerment, a transfer to a corresponding workplace or a promotion. In these training, the Chinese managers should also learn the modern concepts of the management. The external training can include the MBA program, exchanging manager to international branch of company, etc. The main purpose of the training is to change the tradition management attitude and to learn modern management skills. In the GM case, the communication of directives, ideas, concepts, and action items, from the American management to the Chinese management and vice versa is a major problem within the JV. Misunderstanding and ineffectiveness of communication are caused usually by faults of both sides: one side expressing its intention vaguely and the other side not listening very attentively. As the case studies show, expatriates may feel unsatisfied with refusal of responsibilities by local employees, while Chinese managers complain about the lack of trust of their foreign bosses. The problem is accentuated by language difficulties. The language issue is the most significant individual obstacle facing the partners in the JV. Although there are currently three translators on the payroll, only one is really a capable translator. The language barrier can be overcome by replacing the unsuitable translators, increasing the number of translators. Also, the Chinese employees can be required to learn English. On the other hand, in the expatriate managers training which is introduced above, the Chinese language course is included to teach the basic language skills to the expatriates. In addition, the culture barrier is another important problem in JV. According to Hofstede (cited in Pan, & Zhang 2004, p. 83), culture is a kind of ‘collective programming of the mind, which distinguishes the members of one category of people from another’. It is obvious that the Chinese culture is different from the West Culture. Because it has been widely accepted that cultural difference greatly affects human thinking and behaviour, the significant differences between USA and China seem to affect some aspects of their management practice (Pan, & Zhang 2004). To overcome this barrier, one of possible solutions is to encourage a cultural adaptation or learning process which may increase the congruence between culturally different partners and ultimately improve the effectiveness of international business relationship (Lin 2004). According to Gudykunst and Kim (cited in Lin 2004, p. 36), adaptation is a ‘process wherein parts of a system move in a direction that i ncreases the congruence or fit’. In the cultural different environment, cultural adaptation occurs when individuals acquire an increasing level of fitness or compatibility in the new cultural environment. Cultural adaptation is expressed in different forms and at different levels. There are three levels of cultural adaptation including understanding, adjusting, and learning (Lin 2004). Cultural adaptation could involve many essentials including language (verbal and non-verbal), economics, religion, politics, social institutions, values, attitudes, manners, customs, material items, aesthetics and education. In juxtaposition, smooth transition and successful integration of managers going abroad on business would require the individual’s cultural orientations to be determined. From an international business standpoint it is crucial for the long-term success of a company to establish and manage good relationships across cultures (Lin 2004). Another ways to overcome the communication barrier is relationship. The expatriate managers need to build good relationship with their Chine colleagues. Relationship, the term ‘Guan xi’ is used in China, are very important in getting on in Chinese society. In China, four culture factors are grouped into relationship (or Guanxi): group orientation (the need to live in his/her community, all his/her identity was related to his/her  group); Renqing (if you do me a favour, it means I owe you something. I will pay back someday, as well as you are also expecting me to payback the favour one day.); Ganqing (friendship which implies an expectations and obligation of getting /granting favourable responses from/to ones friends); and Face (the concept of saving face or losing face indicating a person’s social status. Having face means that one has good connection within the community, which makes everything done smoothly. But losing face means one get trouble or feels embarrassed in certain circumstance. (Luk et al. 1996) In China, Guanxi is crucial for employees to gain a sense of being together and a sense of communicating with on anther. Researchers also indicate that the job satisfaction and job involvement may well be related to the quality of one’s Guanxi network (Hong, & Engestrom 2004). As a result, in Chinese JV, Guanxi is unavoidable. Actually, the Guanxi has positive and negative potential consequences (Hong, & Engestrom 2004). On the one hand, even if technocratic qualifications have become more necessary, but at the same time Guanxi is another major factor in determining who should be promoted. Workers and staff who have special ‘Guan xi’ with the superiors in power, either through family connections or forming special clues, normally get promoted over others lacking the relationship (Nyaw 1995). On the other hand, Guanxi can enhance the trust between the managers and employees or within the group of employees. Chinese workers regard good Guanxi with them as one of the most important qualifications of being a good leader (Hong, & Engestrom 2004). This is not conflict with the modern management approaches. In the American-lead JV, the expatriate managers can enhance the trust with Chinese employees through developing the Guanxi with them so that the resistance of changes can be reduced and the performance can be more effective and efficiency. However, the weakness of Guanxi should be avoided by establish a completed set of rules and regulars. According to Bolman and Deal (2003), there are several methods to coordinate individuals and units through a variety of horizontal and vertical linkages. The vertical linkages including authority, rules and policies, and planning and control system enable higher levels coordinate and control the work of subordinates. Firstly, the authority is the most basic and ubiquitous way of integration. Secondly, it is noted that the rules, policies, standards, and  standard procedure limit discretion and help ensure predictability and uniformity (Bolman, & Deal. 2003). The company should allow all employees to discuss the rules and standards and encourages them to make suggestions. Through discussion, the rules and standards become clearer for employees and prevent the lack of creativity. The clear and suitable rules and standards are the base for successful planning and control. There are two major approaches to control and planning including performance control and action planning (Mintzber g, as cited in Bolman, & Deal, 2003). The ‘performance-related pay’ bases on the performance control. Because the rules and standards are clear and suitable, the target are measurable, the performance control measures and motivates. The forms of vertical coordination are typically more formalized. But it is not always effective. Lateral techniques such as formal and informal meetings, task forces, coordinating roles, and network are more flexible and may be used to fill the void (Bolman, & Deal, 2003). Formal meetings are undertaken regularly. Moreover, the task forces or project teams can be always assembled in JV to coordinate development of new products or services. The organizational intranet should also be developed in the JV. The network enhances the decentralization and democracy in the company because the bias of organizational intranet toward decentralization, teaming, and cross-functional, and cross geographical work makes it well attuned to complexity and change (Steward, as cited in Bolman, & Deal, 2003). But the networks are difficult to control. It becomes a challenge for managers. As a conclusion, there are many aspects that affect the way international business is conducted. Differences in social, culture, economic, legal and political conditions can greatly affect the way globalised businesses are managed. Doing business abroad presents enormous challenges simply because countries and societies are so incredibly different. There is a need to appreciate not only that these differences exist, but also to appreciate how these differences impact doing business abroad. Doing business abroad requires flexibility to conform to the value systems and norms of that country. Adaptation can embrace all aspects of an international business’s operations in a foreign country, from the way deals are negotiated, to the appropriate incentive pay systems, to the organization structure, product  names, and relations between management and labour. What works in one country most likely will not work in another. It is also noted that clearly maximising the cultural adaptability skills of expatriates and the avoidance of expatriate failure in host country subsidiaries is of major concern to organisations. Maximising the cross-culture performance of expatriate managers in JV must be an integral element of the strategic human resource management planning of organisations in the 21st century as the pace of globalisation necessitates that an increasing number of organisations must think globally and ensure that their expatriates are prepared and supported to do the same. (Hutchings 2002)